Tuna Pasta Bake

The Maldives pole-and-line skipjack fishery has been operating for centuries and has been the lifeline of the Maldivian economy since before the boom of the tourism industry in the mid 1970s. The fishery not only provides a large proportion of the country’s income from the tuna trade and export, but also provides one of the only sources of protein for the Maldivian population, also contributing to a stable livelihood. The Maldivian pole-and-line fishery is located in the Arabian Sea within the Indian Ocean.

The West African Country of Senegal is situated in Northwest Africa, bordered by Mauritania, Mali, Guinea and Guinea-Bissau. Senegal has a large coastline that faces the Atlantic Ocean, and the periods of upwelling contribute to the rich fishing grounds.

Pole-and-line fishing has been in Indonesia since the early 1900's, and was originally introduced by Japanese fishers to produce Katsuobushi, which are dried tuna flakes.

The North Sulawesi and North Maluku fishery is the second-most northernly fishery in Indonesia, almost reaching the border between Indonesia and the Philippines.

In the West Papua fishery, 95% of all catch comes from a combination of skipjack and yellowfin tuna. The catch of non-target wildlife like dolphins, turtles and sharks is minimal.

The West Flores skipjack tuna fishery lands their catch in Maumere, central Flores Island. The tuna is then processed in a factory that either produces canned tuna, or dried tuna flakes.

The South-East Sulawesi fishery operates in the same area as the Wakatobi National Park, which is home to the largest coral reef system in Indonesia. This coral reef makes South-East Sulawesi a hotspot for tuna!

The East Flores fishery utilises the Western and Central Pacific Ocean for the majority of catch, however will also fish in the Indian Ocean during different times of the year.